Chapter 1619: Joy and Sorrow
Then, Xie Daoyun took out a talisman and applied it to her ankle. The swelling disappeared at a visible rate. Zu An clicked his tongue in wonder, remarking, “If someone had a bunch of these talismans, wouldn’t they become invincible?”
Xie Daoyun shook her head and said, “To a certain extent, cultivators can recover on their own. This treatment talisman merely activates one’s innate potential and speeds up healing. In the end, it still depends on one’s own ability. After a certain point, it won’t be able to treat injuries anymore.”
Zu An now had a rough idea of what was happening. This thing was like a catalyst, capable of speeding up a process, but it couldn’t create something from nothing. If the user was exhausted and couldn't recover anymore, it wouldn’t be able to do anything.
“I’m better now, so let's continue and look around at other places,” Xie Daoyun said, standing up and gently stretching her ankle a bit.
Zu An voiced his confirmation, and they began to look around again. However, there were so many people present that they couldn't find anything noteworthy. Just like that, they roamed all around the mountain. Along the way, the Righteous Sun Sect disciples attentively showed them the way. The two of them moved quickly and passed through many places.
“Did you notice anything?” Zu An asked. They were naturally not there just to go on a scenic tour. His greater purpose was to accompany Xie Daoyun as she investigated whether or not there were any hidden formations present.
Xie Daoyun shook her head and said, “Apart from the great formation that protects the Righteous Sun Sect, there aren’t any signs of other formations. But that’s to be expected. The daoist sects’ great competition is now at hand, and there are people coming and going from all sorts of different places. There’s no lack of exceptional individuals among them. If the State Teacher really wanted to mess around somehow, there’s no way it would be so easy for me to notice.”
“Then where should we look next?” Zu An asked.
“Let’s end it here for now. I’ll keep observing over the following days and think over how I should continue this investigation,” Xie Daoyun said with a frown. She looked just like a top student who had stumbled upon a hard question.
“That sounds good,” Zu An said. He thought for a bit, then took out a mask and gave it to her. When he saw her puzzled expression, he explained, “This mask can hide your appearance. If you’re going to secretly look around Violet Mountain’s formations, it will definitely be extremely dangerous. You’re dressed as a man right now, but your skin is too fair, and you look quite attractive. It will be too easy for you to be targeted, and that won’t be favorable for what you want to do.
“This mask was something I stumbled upon coincidentally. It can make you look completely ordinary, and no one will give you a second look on the streets.”
He should have given it to her before, but at the time, he had thought that rather than having a normal-looking face next to him, having an attractive attendant would be much more pleasant. However, after he sensed the two waves of killing intent, he grew vigilant. He naturally didn’t want Xie Daoyun to be in danger anymore.
“Thank you, big brother Zu,” Xie Daoyun said, her face turning pink. Her eyes were full of happiness, because he seemed to be praising her on her beauty.
…
Then, Zu An and Xie Daoyun returned to their courtyard. Soon afterward, some Righteous Sun Sect disciples delivered their evening meals. Because there were just too many guests on Violet Mountain, it wasn’t convenient to eat together at all. Zu An didn’t mind that, though.
The meals that the Righteous Sun Sect disciples brought over were quite sumptuous too. Because this was a cultivation land, there wasn’t much meat and fish, but there were still many mountain delicacies paired with spiritual flowers and unique herbs; they were all beneficial to cultivation.
Zhang Zijiang couldn't help but say with a sigh, “The Righteous Sun Sect really has quite the powerful backing! This meal is enough to last me for an entire month!”
As a court general, and furthermore someone in a formidable position such as the Armed Escort Division, the amount of cultivation resources he was assigned naturally wasn’t low. Even so, the amount they received in a month was only comparable to what he had received here for a single meal. Furthermore, there were so many people present, so just how much were they all going to eat? As such, his shock was completely understandable.
“I believe that only the more important groups were given such abundant meals. But even so, this Righteous Sun Sect is quite the local tyrant,” Zu An said, shaking his head. That Wang Wuxie appeared pure and holy, but he clearly still couldn't help but show off a bit.
…
He and Zhang Zijiang then discussed the matter of Violet Mountain’s repairs. At the same time, they planned to arrange their troops at various chokepoints to be prepared against any hidden dangers.
Zhang Zijiang left while in heavy spirits, because things had become much more difficult with so many daoist cultivators present. Fortunately, Sir Zu had said that he would deal with things involving the nine sects’ higher-level individuals, so he just had to go back and make a concrete plan himself.
Eventually, only Zu An and Xie Daoyun were left in the room. The atmosphere quickly became a bit awkward.
Zu An said, “It’s already quite late. Little sister Ling’er should get some rest early.”
“Huh? Oh, okay…” Xie Daoyun said, thinking to herself, Why do these words sound like what my parents tell each other?
Zu An then said, “You can sleep in my bed.”
“Oh. What?” Xie Daoyun exclaimed in surprise. Wasn’t big brother Zu being too direct?
Even though I have a good impression of him, my parents haven’t approved of this yet, and there aren’t any third parties involved… Isn’t this just an illicit sexual relationship?!
As she came from a literary family, she had always had an extremely strict upbringing in this respect.
Actually, I wouldn’t really mind if it was with big brother Zu, but he is still in love with Chu First Miss. What kind of status would I have if I joined like that…
In that instant, too many possibilities flashed through her mind.
Zu An was stunned. He knew she was thinking strange things. He said, “I figured that, seeing as the attendant’s room only has a single simple bed, it won’t be that fitting for little sister Ling’er. I just happen to have something to do tonight and won’t be back that soon, so you can sleep in my room.”
In order to reclaim his innocence, he didn’t even wait for her reply and just left through the door afterward.
…
“Ah, that was so embarrassing!” Xie Daoyun cried as she jumped into her own bed. She pulled the covers over her head and rolled around back and forth, awkwardly kicking her feet in the air. After a long time passed, her completely red face emerged from the covers. She looked in the direction Zu An left in and muttered to herself, “Big brother Zu really is a gentleman. He even made up an excuse to leave and stay in a different room in order to make me feel better.”
She sat up in the bed, and an absentminded expression spread across her face; her thoughts were inscrutable.
…
Meanwhile, Zu An left the courtyard to look for Chu Chuyan. While wandering around with Xie Daoyun, he had heard the disciples of the sect discuss the White Jade Sect’s two goddesses and their beauty. Judging from their description, he had quickly realized that Yan Xuehen and Chu Chuyan had arrived at Violet Mountain, which filled him with joy.
It was finally evening, and he had taken care of everything else. He couldn't hold himself back anymore. However, as soon as he left his courtyard, he noticed a white figure sneakily fluttering by and called out, “Show yourself!”
He was still feeling restless from the two waves of killing intent this morning. He hadn’t expected them to already be coming after him! He rushed toward the figure. However, that person’s movement skill was extremely profound, and they swiftly twisted to one side to avoid his grip.
Unfortunately, with Zu An’s current cultivation, how could they evade so easily? He was about to lash out when he saw an annoyed and displeased, yet incredibly charming face. He asked, “Chuyan, why are you here?”
“You probably didn’t want to see me tonight, right?” Chu Chuyan harrumphed. She turned and started walking away.
Zu An quickly followed along and replied, “No way! When I heard the disciples discussing how two goddesses had arrived from the White Jade Sect in the afternoon, I knew it was you. I went to look for you as soon as I had the chance.”
“You don’t have to accompany that charming and lovely attendant of yours?” Chu Chuyan replied coldly.
Zu An was stunned, but then replied with a laugh, “So you were jealous! You were even sneaking around… Was it to catch an adulterer? So? Did you discover how loyal I am to you?”
“Who’s jealous of you?” Chu Chuyan harrumphed. “The reason I came here was to remind you that there are people here who are hostile toward you. You have to be on guard.”
Zu An was stunned, asking, “What information did you receive?”
Chu Chuyan said, “In the afternoon, someone sent me a paper strip that hinted at something between you and that attendant… Hmph, I don’t care who you fool around with, but you were targeted and had no idea. If I hadn’t come to warn you, you might have died without even knowing why.”
Zu An felt warm inside. Even though Chu Chuyan was normally ice-cold, and this time, she was clearly jealous, she was still more concerned with his safety. He couldn't help but gently hold her hands, saying, “I did feel two waves of killing intent in the afternoon, but I didn’t notice who it was.”
“Judging from your description, they’re probably people from a certain faction of the nine sects,” Chu Chuyan said. She tried to shake him off, but couldn't, so she just let him continue. She said with a serious expression, “This time, many powerful cultivators from the nine daoists sects arrived. Just who did you offend?”
“If it’s anyone I’ve offended recently… then it’s probably the Heavenly Sorrow Sect,” Zu An replied. He thought to himself, Could it be that Zhao Xiaodie told the sect about that time?
That wasn’t too likely, was it? She was the one who had proactively begged for forgiveness, and that situation was just too embarrassing. She was likely too ashamed to talk about it.
When she remembered what had happened in King Yan Manor, Chu Chuyan thought that was most likely the case too. She replied, “As long as you know what’s going on. Heavenly Sorrow Sect’s Guan Chouhai has cultivation on par with my master’s. Even though he wouldn’t go so far as to bully juniors, you still need to be careful.” She turned around to leave afterward.
“I’m not even scared of him. Don’t I still have you and big sis Yan?” Zu An replied, following along with a smile.
Chu Chuyan said, “She’s my master, and yet you’re calling her big sis. You’re clearly trying to take advantage of me.”
“Ah, come on. We can just have our own relationships with each other, right?” Zu An said.
…
As the two of them continued to chat, they unwittingly arrived at Chu Chuyan’s residence. Chu Chuyan said helplessly, “You’ve already seen me back, so you can go back already.”
“You might have done what you wanted to do with me, but I still haven’t talked about why I was looking for you,” Zu An said with a smile.
“What do you need me for?” Chu Chuyan replied, a faint blush creeping across her face.
“Lovesickness, of course,” Zu An said, sizing up the beauty in front of him. Her lips were slightly open, moist and sparkling like morning dew. He couldn't help but move closer.
Chu Chuyan bit her lip slightly, saying, “But master isn’t letting me meet you…”
Before she could even finish, she moaned as Zu An forcibly kissed her. She struggled a bit, but then, her body gradually softened. No matter how cold the Snowflake Sword was, how could it stop the blistering heat of a couple in love?
At first, Chu Chuyan’s hands instinctively covered her chest. But soon afterward, she unwittingly wrapped her arms around her lover’s neck; she was embarrassed, but proactively responded to Zu An’s passionate kiss.
Suddenly, both of them stopped. A rather elegant male voice called out from outside, “Fairy Chu, Heavenly Sorrow’s Zhi Yin wishes to meet with you.”
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